This article is about the French department. For the neighboring department to its north, seeHaute-Savoie. For the historical region of Savoy, seeSavoy. For other uses of "Savoie", seeSavoie (disambiguation). For other uses of "Savoy", seeSavoy (disambiguation).
It is widely accepted[citation needed] that Savoie takes its name from theLatinSapaudia orSabaudia, meaning land covered infir trees. Savoie was long part of the states ofSavoy; though beginning in the 16th century, it was occupied byFrance several times. It was integrated into theMont-Blancdepartment from 1792 to 1815 (and partially into theLéman department from 1798 to 1814). The province wasannexed by France in 1860. The formerDuchy of Savoy became the two departments of Savoie andHaute-Savoie.
The other main alpine valley is theMaurienne, connected to the Tarentaise valley by two passes, thecol de la Madeleine and the highest pass in Europe, thecol de l'Iseran. The Maurienne valley was through thecol du Mont Cenis, the major commercial route between France and Italy. It is one of the longest intra-alpine valleys in the Alps.
The department is crossed by theIsère river, which has its source in the Iseran pass. Its two main lakes areLac du Bourget (the largest and deepest lake entirely in France) andLac d'Aiguebelette, one of the least polluted in France due to a 1976 law forbidding any use ofmotorboats on the lake.
According to the Chambéry chamber of commerce, close to 50% of the department's wealth comes from tourism. Each year, Savoie hosts over 30 million visitor-nights of tourists. Savoie also profits from its natural resources with particular strengths in ore processing andhydroelectric power.
Savoie had an exceptionally high export/import ratio of 214% in 2005. Its exports rose to €1.768 billion and €825 million in imports. Its leading exports weresteel,aluminum, and electric and electronic components.
Numerous wine grapes are also grown in Savoie. The most famous wines are made ofGamay,Pinot noir andMondeuse grapes. Fruit production is the third largest component of agriculture in Savoie.
Apples and pears are also produced in the region and are well known for their qualities.
The "average" (seearithmetic mean) population density is not a good indicator: the valleys tend to be much more densely populated, whereas the mountains tend to be near-completely uninhabited.
Tourism, which is quite important to Savoie, began to develop towards the end of the 19th century, mostly summer oriented.[citation needed] The increase in the popularity ofskiing in the 20th century made Savoie home to the largest number of ski hills in France, including many famous ones:
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